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Delhi

Palwal train accident: Driver dead, over 100 injured

Two trains collided in Haryana’s Palwal district on Tuesday morning leaving the driver dead and around 100 passengers injured out of which two are said to be critical.

The incident took place near Baghola in Palwal district, about 60 km away from New Delhi. The Electric Multiple Unit (EMU), a local passenger train, rammed into the Lokmanya Tilak-Haridwar Express that had halted on the same track since it did not get a signal to move forward.

While the EMU driver, Yashpal (51), died on the spot, three persons including the guard of Lokmanya Tilak Haridwar AC Express, B B Gupta (55), were injured. The remaining two injured have been identified as Bunty (35) and Hari Krishan (40), both passengers of the EMU. “The conditions of the injured are stable. While Hari has sustained head injuries, Bunty fractured his left arm,” Chief Medical Officer (Palwal) Aditya Swarup said.

The local passenger train travelling from Palwal to Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh collided with the Lokmanya Tilak Haridwar Express between Palwal-Asaoti stations at around 8.25 am, reportedly due to fog. Officials also said that the passengers of both the trains are safe. “According to the rule, the driver of the EMU train was supposed to stop at an earlier signal (the signal where the next train had stopped). He didn’t follow the rule and further the fog played a key role in the mishap,” Neeraj Shrama, DPRO of Northern Railway said.

He also said that the railway authorities will take disciplinary action against the defaulters, but unfortunately the driver has already died.

Even thought the rescue team of railway officers including a relief van and medical teams had rushed to the site for restoration and relief measures, eyewitnesses alleged that rescue teams arrived late at the spot and did not even have gas cutters and other equipment to help bring out the trapped passengers. They also alleged that the EMU driver was alive after the mishap but died since he could not be evacuated immediately.

Sources revealed that doctors from Palwal, Faridabad, Ballabgarh and New Delhi had gone to the spot. Railway authorities said they were trying to restore normalcy on the route. The mishap hit movement on the route and disrupted the movement of about 15 trains.

Meanwhile, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar spoke to Palwal deputy commissioner and asked him to step up rescue and relief work.
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